• 🆕 This Week’s Hot New Sips
• 📉 Labor Day Sales Ease BevAlc Decline
• 📬 USPS BevAlc Bill Reintroduced
• 🐄 Lifeway CEO’s Brother Buys Dairy Plant
• 🚛 Distribution: Nurri Heads to Costco
• 💰 Ferovinum Raises $23.3M
• 📺 Behind The Scenes of 'Buy It Now'
• 🍫 A Tiny Bit Better Doesn’t Cut It… We See You Lunchly

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It is a move that could impact “thousands of customers” as a highly touted trans-continental partnership to manufacture next-gen aluminum cans in the U.S. has come to an abrupt end. 

This week, American Canning’s Aluminum Toyo Ultimate Can (aTULC) manufacturing plant in Texas was shuttered, ending an innovative first-in-the-nation packaging partnership that had attracted significant interest from ready-to-drink cocktail and energy drink makers.

In a letter to customers seen by BevNET, David Racino, co-founder and CEO of American Canning, wrote that Japanese manufacturer Toyo Seiko Group Holdings “has unexpectedly decided to no longer support the can plant project and terminated all agreements, forcing an immediate closure of the aTULC facility.”

“The abrupt nature of their decision has placed an undue burden on our ability to continue operations across all other verticals,” he continued. “Due to interdependence between business units, we are unable to sustain our supply distribution business, including web sales moving forward. In the immediate, we will continue to service our e-commerce customers via web orders as long as existing inventory allows.”

The announcement comes just over a week after Toyo Seikan publicly recognized the potential for “uncollectable or delinquent accounts receivable” from an unnamed customer to which it was selling aluminum can making equipment under a lease purchase agreement.

aTULC is a proprietary can developed by Toyo Seiko that uses a pre-coated aluminum sheet and liner that offers better shelf-life and resistance to corrosion over liners that are sprayed on as the cans are manufactured, according to promotional materials. Those properties have made it ideal for next-gen beverage alcohol brands like canned wine and RTD cocktails, as well as THC-infused and functional drinks.

Read the full story on BevNET for more details, including what this means for the future of American Canning’s supply distribution business.

Today is Friday and you all know what that means…. It's new product gallery time! We’ve rounded up the hottest new products and packaged them up into a neat array. Here’s a sneak peek at what’s inside:

☕ SOWN has expanded its portfolio of oat coffee creamers with the addition of Oat Cold Foaming Cream. The new offering, now available at Whole Foods Market stores nationwide, is ready to sit atop consumers’ cold brew beverages after 30 seconds of frothing. 

⚡ Gatorade has once again gone head-to-head with electrolyte powder brands with the launch of Gatorade Hydration Booster, available in Tropical Mango, Strawberry Watermelon and Citrus Berry flavors.

🍊 Zero-sugar kombucha maker Humm has introduced its latest flavor, Ruby Red Grapefruit. The Whole30 Approved flavor features two billion probiotics per 12 oz. can and has Vitamin B12 to support energy. 

Check out the full roundup of new products on BevNET later today.

The latest data set from NIQ showed a modest improvement in sales declines for total BevAlc in the two-week period before September 7, which included a tepid Labor Day weekend, according to analysis from Goldman Sachs Equity Research. Here’s the overview:

• Performance improved for beer, spirits, hard seltzer and cider, while deteriorating slightly for wine. 
• Spirit-based RTD sales growth was positive, recording a 13.3% increase, and wine-based RTD sales were also consistent, up 21.6% in the two-week period versus 30.6% in the 52-weeks. Hard seltzer, beer, hard lemonade saw some ease but were in the negative. 
• In RTDs, Gallo-owned High Noon still leads, up 8.3% in the two-weeks, with Cutwater behind up 16.9% and Jack Daniel’s RTDs still struggling. 

BevNET Insiders can read the full report recap.

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A bill aimed at allowing the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to ship alcoholic beverages was reintroduced this week amidst cries from representatives of small brewers and craft distillers for more opportunities to get their products to consumers.

📝 The USPS Shipping Equity Act was introduced by Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley and sponsored by New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Washington Sen. Patty Murray and Vermont Sen. Peter Welch.

⛔ The original effort to end a Prohibition-era ban preventing the USPS from shipping alcohol began in 2021, but has been opposed by groups such as the Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA). A bill was introduced in the House in May 2023 but has stalled.

🍻 The legislation would allow the USPS to ship alcoholic beverages directly from licensed producers and retailers to consumers 21-years-old and older in accordance with state and local shipping regulations. The bill has received several endorsements including support from the American Postal Workers Union, the National Association of Letter Carriers AFL-CIO, the Brewers Association for Small and Independent Craft Brewers, and the American Craft Spirits Association.

🏛️ The American Craft Spirits Association has been in D.C. this week, lobbying for more market modernizations following the release of its 2023 data showing that craft spirits faced its first decline in recent history.

Edward and Ludmila Smolyansky, respectively the brother and mother of Lifeway Foods CEO Julie Smolyansky, have purchased a dairy production facility in Wisconsin. The move comes as the mother-son duo continue to develop a competing kefir brand after leaving Lifeway last year.

🧀 The facility in Belmont, Wisc., was previously owned by cheese manufacturer Saputo. According to Food Processing, Edward Smolyansky intends to retrofit the plant for kefir production likely in connection to his new companies Pure Culture Organics or Lucy’s Organics.

🥊 Edward and Ludmila have been feuding with Julie for about two years now, as Edward has openly criticized his sister’s leadership of the brand, believing she has failed to embrace modern innovation trends among other issues. Despite this, Lifeway has consistently reported record sales results for several consecutive quarters.

🥛 Edward Smolyansky is looking to open up the facility next year and plans to produce both plant-based and dairy kefirs.

Several brands made some retail gains this week. Here’s a look at the latest in distribution news:

💪🏼 Nurri is launching its line of Protein Milk Shakes into Costco stores nationwide with 12-packs. Each 11 oz. can contains 30 grams of protein and 1 gram of sugar.

🤠 Actor Cole Hauser’s Free Rein Coffee Company is making its first nationwide retail rollout this week in Walmart, introducing its American Dirt, Homestead and Prospect ground coffees, as well as two K-Cup SKUs, into the mass retailer.

🇲🇽 Functional soda brand Perfy is going down south with a launch into GNC stores in Mexico, founder Vasa Martinez announced on LinkedIn.

Supply chain financing platform Ferovinum has raised $23.3 million to expand its service for wine and spirits brands into new markets.

• The funding marks the close of Ferovinum’s series A funding round, led by Notion Capital, a European SaaS (software as a service) and cloud investment firm.
• Ferovinum is a SaaS and a lending platform that streamlines funding, production, procurement and sales processes across wine and spirits markets, and to date has invested more than $151.6 million of funding in support of U.K. wine and spirits producers, according to the company.
• With its latest funding, Ferovinum aims to enter the U.S. and broader European market later this year, and expand its product set across funding and the supply chain. 

Amazon is making a dash to combine content and commerce with the debut of a new “Shark Tank”-style show known as "Buy It Now," set to premier on Oct. 30. The Amazon Prime original will see entrepreneurs pitch their products for a chance to be featured on the platform’s “Buy It Now” storefront.

📹 The competition show will take place in front of a studio audience and rotating panel of judges, including Goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow, Ring creator Jamie Siminoff, Amazon’s VP for U.S. ad sales Tanner Elton and designer Christian Siriano, among others. Comedian J.B. Smoove will host the show. 

⏱️ Participants will have 90 seconds to pitch their product and then the audience votes if it should proceed to the judging panel. In addition to receiving placement in the ecommerce giant’s dedicated storefront, winners will also receive $20,000. 

When worlds collide, do consumers benefit? The hosts weigh in on Lunchly, the much hyped new Lunchables competitor launched by uber influencers and entrepreneurs Mr. Beast, Logan Paul and KSI. They also highlight unusual collaborations between fashion and consumer brands, and reach for healthy soups and shots.

Listen to the episode now.